


Smuggling Strangers

by Just_Tori



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018), The Last of Us
Genre: Angst, F/F, F/M, I had to kill someone, I might change the rating, I will add tags later on, I'm so sorry, It's Ridiculous, M/M, Please Forgive me, everybody is in this fanfiction, i didn't want to, they're so gay for each other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-12
Updated: 2020-04-18
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:55:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23613370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Just_Tori/pseuds/Just_Tori
Summary: Catra never thought her life could get any worse than it already was. Until she accepts a job from the Fireflies and has to smuggle an old acquaintance across Etheria.On top of having to deal with infected, bandits, hunters and hardheaded old friends, she also has to confront feelings she thought she had buried long ago for a person she used to know better than she knew herself and that was now a complete stranger.She doesn't know which of these things will kill her first.
Relationships: Adora & Catra (She-Ra), Adora/Catra (She-Ra), Kyle/Rogelio (She-Ra), Mermista/Sea Hawk (She-Ra), Netossa/Spinnerella (She-Ra)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 49





	1. Chapter 1

This was a bad idea, Catra was sure of that.

No idea in the history of ideas had ever been this bad. She knew because she’d had _a lot_ of them. Being a young girl training to fight in a war that isn’t your own will do that to you.

But of all her bad ideas this one definitely had to be the worst.

It had been a normal day, or as normal as one can be during a virus outbreak that had started 20 years ago, when she’d received an anonymous note.On the back of it, emblazoned in a dark blue color, was a sign she’d seen many times before and that could only mean one thing: Fireflies.

The Fireflies were the most notorious rebel group in Etheria and placed first on the list of enemies the Horde wanted gone. In the first years after the outbreak, when the Horde had taken over for the Etherian Council and had issued the Quarantine Zones to keep citizens from leaving the kingdoms, the Fireflies had been the first to revolt against military oppression and forced labor. In some kingdoms, such as Brightmoon and Plumeria, they had even managed to overthrow the Horde.

However, in the Fright Quarantine Zone, Hordak had defeated the group, which was now in hiding all around the city.

Catra had been skeptical about the note. Why would the rebels send _her_ a note of all people? It was probably a trap set up by the Horde, she decided. She hid the message safely in her jacket and went about her day as she normally would.

Did she try not to think about it? Of course. Did she manage to get through most of her day without having the urge to open it every two seconds? No. Did she sleep soundly and forget about the note completely? Also no.

Did she open it? Yes, what did you expect?

The note read:

_I have a job for you. Meet me at the harbor after curfew._

_-A_

Catra scoffed. Her fingers had itched and her mind had tempted her to open… _this_?

What made them think Catra wanted to help them anyway? All they did was play pretend heroes and steal people’s lives away, no thank you.

Moreover, she was used to having to deal with dangerous people but getting involved with the Fireflies was a whole different story altogether.

The Horde had been on high alert ever since the rebels had started attacking Horde convoys around the Fright Zone and apparently trying to smuggle something very important out of the city.

Alas, her impulses had won at last and she’d decided she had nothing better to do than sneak around the city after curfew to meet some stupid Firefly that had a job for her.

She’d told herself that in the best case scenario she would get the job done as quickly and quietly as possible and go back to her life.

_Worst case scenario this is a trap and I die,_ she thought optimistically.

Apparently the universe had something much worse planned for her, but she wouldn't know that until later that evening and she was _not_ going to be happy about it.

——————————————————

Getting to the harbor without getting spotted by the Horde guards stationed around the city was hard. Catra had done it hundred of times without getting caught but Hordak had doubled the lookouts after curfew because of—you guessed it— the Fireflies.

Catra wondered how long the rebels were going to keep trying to overthrow Hordak and continue their search for a cure before realizing it was all hopeless.

“Attention” a robotic voice spoke “curfew is now in full effect. Anyone caught outside without proper authorization will be—”

_…arrested and prosecuted, yeah we know,_ Catra finished in her head rolling her eyes.

She moved stealthily across the rooftops, moving between the soldiers’ blind spots, which was easy since she could conveniently see in the dark just as well as she could see during daytime. Perks of being part cat, she supposed. The weight of her backpack was familiar and comforting on her shoulders. She would never admit this out loud, because she hated this city, but the Fright Zone was kind of beautiful at night. As opposed to daytime when soldiers and citizens alike bustled through the streets like ants in the grass going about their day trying to survive in this hellhole of a world, nighttime was quiet and peaceful, with only the sound of soldiers’ shuffling feet as they patrolled the city’s roads.

With barely any lights except for the city’s lampposts and the guards’ flashlights, the sky shone full of stars and Catra could see all the constellations she would point out when she was little: Orion, Aries, Sagittarius, Leo… her best friend had once told her that before the outbreak people used some of the constellations as their “zodiac sign”.

_“What’s that?”_ Catra had asked while they were sitting on the rooftop of their barracks gazing at the stars. They had been unable to sleep and had decided that a midnight stargazing session would be good for both of them after a training-filled day.

_“It’s something that describes your personality” her friend explained, her gaze still fixed on the million upon million of shiny dots that glinted above them._

_“Like an adjective?” Catra frowned at the sky trying to understand. Her best friend laughed. A laugh that sometimes still echoed in her mind like a broken record._

_“No dummy. Like something you use to understand how a person acts and how they think” she explained “For example, I think I would be a Leo because I’m very ambitious, enthusiastic and creative”_

_Catra scoffed.“Someone thinks highly of themselves” she bumped her best friend’s shoulder with her own, making her laugh again. The feline tore her eyes away from the sky looking at the smiling face beside her. The starlight bounced off the girl’s blonde hair making it look like a golden halo and the feline felt her breath catch in her chest. She tried to ignore the feeling. The goosebumps on her arms were probably due to the fact that they’d been up on the rooftop for about an hour now and it was the middle of the winter. She also ignored the fact that she wasn’t actually cold at all._  
  
“So what about me?” Catra asked making the blonde turn her head towards her and give her a once over, blue eyes analyzing carefully the way they did in a battle simulation, lower lip held hostage between her teeth.

God she’s cute, _Catra’s brain spoke without permission._

Shut it weirdo, she’s your best friend, _another part of her scolded. Great, now she’d started talking to herself in her head. The blonde hummed snapping Catra out of her thoughts._

_“I think you would be a Scorpio” she decided_

_“You mean those creepy little things with the pointy tail?” Catra asked raising an eyebrow._

_“_ Scorpio. _Not scorpion” she replied “It’s someone who’s determined and passionate and intuitive”_

_Her friend smiled at her making her stomach do somersaults. Surely it was something she had eaten and not the way those blue eyes bore into her making her wish she could simultaneously crawl away and hide but also stay seated on that rooftop forever._

_“Wow,_ intuitive _” Catra repeated. “Big words, princess”_

_The girl rolled her eyes and pushed the feline’s shoulder playfully._

_“Isn’t it weird to think that maybe somewhere up there one of those dots could be an alternate world where none of this happened?” Catra said gesturing around her, referring to the world around them. She had never known anything but the world they lived in now, a reality in which survival was all that mattered and if you didn’t learn to adapt you were pretty much dead meat._

_The world that had existed before her seemed like a fairytale and that was all it would ever be. Nevertheless, every once in a while she couldn’t stop her mind from wandering and dreaming of simpler times._

_The blonde thought for a second then returned her gaze to Catra’s mismatched eyes._

_“Doesn’t matter, I guess” she said._

_Catra frowned at her. “Huh?”_

_“We’re here, right now. It doesn't matter what happens in another dimension as long as we have each other in this one” she explained seriously. Catra’s heart stuttered again. What the hell was she supposed to say to_ that _?_

__

Dammit you can’t just say stuff like that and expect a girl’s brain not to short-circuit, _Catra thought._

_“Alright, dork. Let’s go to bed before you get me into any more trouble today” Catra said ignoring her racing heartbeat, before standing up and brushing her pants off._

_“_ Me _get_ you _into trouble? Last time I checked_ you _were the one who pranked Octavia and got her chasing after us because you were bored” the blonde said huffing. She spoke in an exasperated tone but Catra didn't miss the smirk that crept onto her face as she joined the feline in walking to the emergency door that led downstairs._

_“Whatever, we both know you’re the troublemaker in this relationship and I’m the angel who keeps you from messing up the pranks” Catra raised her chin as if offended by the implication that she had strung the blonde along and not the other way around. Her friend rolled her eyes at the antics._

_“Uh-huh whatever you tell yourself to sleep at night. Let’s go before they catch us up here,_ angel _”_

Cara shook herself out of the memory and glared at the sky clenching her jaw. Stupid constellations and stupid rooftops and stupid, blonde best friends. She took a deep breath.

_Focus on the task at hand,_ she told herself.

She looked around to spot any guards along the path. All clear. She jumped off the ledge she was perched on, landing on the red fire escape beneath her with a metallic _clang,_ fortunately not loud enough for anybody but her to hear.

One of the reasons Catra was an excellent smuggler was because her feline instincts and her morphology came in handy when she had to be stealthy, but it was also useful if it came down to fighting.

Growing up she had never been the strongest or the biggest but she was fast and smart. She had quickly learned how to use her adversary’s weakness against them and how to manipulate people into giving her what she wanted.

Other smugglers were good because they had many contacts throughout the city that helped them get the cargo from one point to the next, but Catra worked alone on almost every job she got and she _always_ got it done, without asking unnecessary. She was the best at what she did because she did it in her own way.

The things that make you different are the things that make you special.

That was a lesson she had to learn the hard way. Well, in her case it was more like “The things that make you part cat are the things that make you good at smuggling things and killing people”, but you get the point.

That’s why the Fireflies had sent her a note and not any other smuggler from her district. Lucky her. (Please note sarcasm).

She wasn’t far from the harbor now, just had to make it through the yard without anyone seeing her and then she would be safe from the guards’ spotlight. The problem was that Hordak had cleverly placed most of his finest lookouts there, knowing that the harbor was were the Fireflies operated the most. She quietly climbed down the fire escape and hid behind a wooden crate, waiting a few seconds before peeking from behind it.

There were three— maybe four— lookouts, and she knew the shape of the yard more or less resembled a vertical rectangle.

Currently she was hidden behind a crate on the south-west corner and the stairs that led to the harbor were on the north-east corner. There were two lookouts who always patrolled the sides of the yard: the first guy, who patrolled the east side, stopped at about halfway where Crate 4 was placed. And before you ask, yes she numbered the crates okay? Shut it. Anyway, across Crate 4 was Crate 5 and from there to the north-west corner another guard patrolled the area. On top of that there were two guards that patrolled from west to east and back again. Fortunately there was Crate 2 along the way.

_30 feet between crates and 10 seconds between lookouts. Shouldn’t be too hard,_ she thought.

The first guy she had to avoid was directly in front of her. Catra waited for him to get to the east end of the area before jumping over the crate she was hidden behind and sprinting to Crate 2. She waited for the second guy to walk to the south end and out of her line of sight before crouching to Crate 5. All she had to do now was sprint to Crate 3, which was directly in front of the stairs to the harbor. Ah, conveniently placed crates were one of her favorite things. She took a breath before sprinting and diving behind it.

“What was that?”

_Shit._

She ran to the stairs without looking back.

—————————————————————

Queen Firefly hadn't bothered to mention which warehouse they were supposed to meet in, of course. She was going to have to figure that out on her own.

Most warehouses were rusty and beat up and covered in vines. Catra heard somewhere that some smugglers had met in a secret underground bunker… right. She looked around again. The sea was calm tonight and the only sound she could hear was the slow lull of the waves against the wooden docks. She flicked her left ear, then her right. Nothing. She sighed. The more she waited the more impatient she got, her tail swished back and forth behind her mirroring her annoyance.

Suddenly she caught a flash of light out of the corner of her eye. Her head snapped in that direction and caught movement in one of the larger warehouses on the far end of the docks.

She slowly made her way over to it, carefully unsheathing her dagger from the belt around her waist. The weapon wasn’t anything special, just an iron blade and a wooden hilt. She wasn’t particularly attached to it since she usually preferred fighting without a weapon, being armed with teeth and claws, but it came in handy when she had to stab an infected’s head in.

The warehouse didn't look too beat up, unlike every other around her. Sure, it had vines growing on the sides and the metal had had several bullets pass through them, but it was an amateur compared to all the others.

Catra entered the complex and looked around. The shelves were stacked with large metal crates, probably containing weapons such as the ones the Horde used, and the lights were off. Before she could make her way any further into the building, she felt the hair on the back of her neck stand on end and the air moving behind her. Her body thought for her and her instincts kicked in as she ducked out of the way before her attacker could hit. She threw her right leg out and spun around kicking her opponents legs out from under them.

They let out a grunt and fell to the ground, their weapon clattering to the ground. Before they had the chance to get up Catra straddled them, gripping their wrists and pinning them above their head as they struggled.

Suddenly the lights switched on and Catra’s eyes snapped shut at the change. A sharp pain went through her head as she tried to shake away the spots dancing in her vision.

The person under her took the opportunity to switch their positions and throw Catra onto her back. The feline let out a grunt when she hit the floor and her dagger went flying out of her hand. She tried to struggle out of her opponent’s clutch but that only made them grip harder. When her eyes finally adjusted she wished they never had. She wished she had never picked up that stupid note and made the stupid decision to make her way to an abandoned warehouse in the middle of the night, risking getting caught by the Horde only to help a stupid, _goddamned_ Firefly. Her brain tried to catch up with what her eyes were seeing.

Because staring down at her with bright blue eyes widened in surprise and blonde hair framing her face was none other than— wait for it— her long-lost best friend, Adora Grayskull.

So of course, Catra did the only thing her brain was used to doing when she saw that face.

“Hey Adora”


	2. I can't walk on the path of the right because I'm wrong

“Hey Adora”

“Catra?”

Adora was pretty sure her brain had just melted, or exploded, or something.She blinked several times trying to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish, grasping at something to say.

“Long time no see”

Of course, Catra always found something to say to unnerve Adora. The blonde shook herself out of her daze and glared at the brunette spread underneath her, looking up at her.

“What are you doing here?” she demanded.

“Just taking a midnight stroll, I hear it cleanses the soul” Catra smirked at her.

“Adora” the blonde heard Angella’s voice coming from behind her. She looked back at where Angella stood, looking down at Adora without letting go of Catra.

“I asked her here, let her go” she ordered. Angella, also known as the Queen of the Fireflies, gazed at the two girls. Her clothes would have never given anyone the impression that she was the leader of the Fright Zone’s most wanted rebel group, what with the worn out jacket and the blood stained cargo pants. But when she had to she could be ruthless and take the most burdensome decisions.

Adora looked back down at Catra and was suddenly very aware of the position they were in and she felt heat flush her face. Catra never lost her smirk as Adora gave her one last glance and let go of her wrists climbing off of her. She quickly grabbed her sword from its spot on the floor and returned it to its sheath on her back, taking a few steps away from the feline.

“Wow, what a good little soldier. You haven’t changed a bit” Catra teased climbing to her feet and brushing herself off. The blonde ignored her comment and instead paused to take her in. She’d grown since Adora had last seen her, that was kind of a given considering it had been 7 years—but who was counting, right? She’d grown taller and leaner, her face looked more mature than it had at the age of 17. Her jawline was more accentuated, her cheekbones more prominent and her lips fuller. But what most bothered Adora was that she could see Catra wasn’t the girl she had known as a teenager anymore. Her eyes weren’t sparkling with the energy Adora was used to, instead they were replaced by a look she couldn’t quite read and that made her uneasy.

Adora had the urge to roll her eyes at the sheer arrogance of her outfit. She wore black sneakers, a black backpack on her shoulders, ripped skinny jeans and aleather jacket— because of course she was wearing a leather jacket, she always thought it would make her look cool when they were kids and now that she had one… Adora kinda had to admit she looked hot.

The blonde’s eyes lingered on her figure a second too long. The feline turned her smirk to her as if she knew what was going on in Adora’s head.

She shook herself out of her thoughts and felt heat return to her cheeks.

“Thank you for coming” Angella said, taking a few steps towards Catra, who eyed her suspiciously.

“You said you had a job?”

“Straight to business, I see” Angella nodded in agreement. “I need you to smuggle something”

Catra raised an eyebrow. “Duh, that’s what I do”

As she waited for Angella to elaborate, the pieces came together in Adora’s mind making her eyes widen and her eyebrows shoot up.

“Her? She’s the person you contacted?” she asked incredulously as Angella turned to her.

“Yes” the woman replied calmly.

“But she— she’s— we can’t trust her, she’s a smuggler.” Adora stuttered as she looked back and forth between Catra and Angella.

“Aww thanks, princess” Catra said batting her eyelashes at Adora and giving her a saccharine smile.

The blonde ignored her.

“She is the best smuggler in town”

“It doesn’t matter, she’s unreliable and untrustworthy—”

“Adora” Angella interrupted in a stern voice. “This is the last chance we’ll get. We’ve come too far and lost too many to pull back now. If a mercenary is what it will take, then so be it”

The blonde’s shoulders tensed in frustration and her fists clenched at her sides. She knew this was an important step for the Fireflies and possibly for humanity in general but trusting a mercenary with anything was never a smart move, they were stubborn and had low moral standards. In a blink of an eye they could— and would— turn their back on you and leave you lying on the floor in a pool of your own blood. She knew that first hand.

On the other hand she knew Angella was right: they had sacrificed too much just to give up now.

“Where’s the drop off?” Cara asked nonchalantly looking at her nails as she spoke. Clearly _she_ didn’t have anything against the situation. Adora slumped against the shelf behind her in defeat.

“The Crystal Castle just outside of town, there’s a crew of Fireflies that will be waiting for you there” the queen told her.

Cara crossed her arms over her chest “That’s not exactly close”

“You drop her off, come back and I’ll pay you whatever amount you see fit”

Catra frowned “ _Her_?”

Angella looked back at Adora, who was watching the scene unfold from her spot leaning on a shelf. Catra followed her gaze, stopping on Adora, who suddenly felt the urge to run under the scrutinizing gaze. The feline raised an eyebrow again, then looked back at Angella to see her face completely serious, then back at Adora.

She burst out laughing and clutched her stomach. Adora frowned exchanging a confused glance with Angella, who mirrored her expression.

“You’re not serious are you?” Catra said still cackling.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” The queen asked.

“You want me to smuggle _her_? I’m sorry that’s hysterical” she laughed again. “What, princess? Can’t walk on your own two feet?”

Adora glared at the brunette. “You don’t—”

“Getting spotted is not a chance she can take. Plus, isn’t familiar with the Fright Zone’s patrols in those districts like you are” Angella interrupted to avoid what was clearly going to become an argument between the two girls.

Catra eyed the Firefly. “It’s going to cost you. That isn't exactly an easy part of town to cross, and with Hordak having doubled the guards around town…”

“How much?” Angella asked. Catra looked at the ceiling in thought.

“30 ration cards” she decided.

“10” Angella countered.

“20. Final offer” Catra held out her hand for the queen to shake. “Going once, going twice…” Angella took the brunette’s hand shaking it.

Catra grinned. “Pleasure doing business with you”

Angella turned to Adora, who pushed herself off the shelf and stopped a few feet away from the queen.

“I—”

“You’re going to be fine” the woman interrupted. “You’re smart and resourceful and you’re going to make it” she brought her hand up to Adora’s face and moved a lock of blonde hair away from her face, smiling.

“Now go” she said. Adora breathed deeply and glanced at Angella one last time before walking out of the warehouse with Catra in tow.

______________________________________________________________________________

“Where are we going?” Adora asked as they walked through an abandoned tunnel. She gripped the straps of her backpack tighter as she looked around. What could they possibly find in a dark, damp place like this?

“Patience, princess”

Adora felt the urge to scream at her. These were going to be the longest hours of her entire life, and that’s seriously saying something since she was used to extensive Horde _and_ Firefly training. To be smuggled by her ex best friend who hated her guts was… just great.

She thought Catra had been dead, that’s what you generally assume when you don’t see a person for a long time in this reality. But seeing her made Adora feel elated and melancholic at the same time.

  
Her best friend was alive but she also wasn’t her best friend anymore, she felt more like a stranger now. Someone Adora had grown up with, and yet someone she’d grown up without. A girl she used to know everything about and that she now didn’t know at all.

She sighed and tried to distract herself by looking at her surroundings.

She pointed her flashlight at the walls, wrinkling her nose at the sight of infected bodies curled in on themselves and the fungi spreading from their skulls lining the walls with spores. She doesn’t think she’ll ever get used to the smell of a dead Clicker anytime soon, and honestly can anybody blame her?

In the Horde they taught cadets how to kill the infected by any means possible but in the Fireflies they’d taught her what happened to human beings when they got infected with the virus. There were four stages to the infection: Runner, Stalker, Clicker, Bloater. She knew that it took 1 or 2 days for the person in question to develop aggressive tendencies and start attacking other people. It then took up to two or three weeks for the second stage to kick in and for the fungus to start growing outside of the host’s body. The third stage usually developed within a year and was characterized by a form of echolocation that the host developed to find its prey. It was a distinct clicking sound, hence the name Clicker, that had Adora’s skin crawling every time she heard it.

Apparently most of the times the fungus would lead the host to a dark and moist place where it thrived best, like an underground tunnel or an abandoned building, to kill it and keep spreading through the environment. The host wouldrarely go on to the fourth stage, but when it did… well, let’s just say a Bloater wasn’t something she wanted to encounter during her journey underground.

Adora had also heard rumors that during the first stage the hosts were conscious of what they were doing but weren’t able to control it, she’d always prayed that wasn't true and that it was just a tale other cadets had made up to spook her. Still, she couldn’t help but wonder.

“I would be if we weren’t walking aimlessly in a dark tunnel 10 feet underground” she told Catra. The feline was walking a few feet ahead of her and pointing her flashlight down the tunnel’s shaft. She didn’t seem fazed by the creepy atmosphere at all, walking calmly and leisurely. Adora wondered how many times she’d taken this path alone… she shuddered just thinking about it.

“You afraid of rats?” Catra joked, glancing behind her with a smirk.

“Yeah” Adora mumbled glancing at the Clicker body on the ground “rats”.

“Don’t worry, we’re almost there” Catra said.

_Cool. Where’s “there” again?_ Adora wondered silently resisting the urge to look behind her every two seconds. She pointed her flashlight in front of her once more and jogged slightly to catch up with Catra.

“So a smuggler, huh?”

The feline hummed in acknowledgment. “Why’s that?” She looked beside her to see the brunette’s reaction but all she saw was a dark silhouette, barely illuminated by the light in front of her.

“Easy money” Catra replied nonchalantly. Adora scoffed at her.

“Yeah right, c’mon I thought you liked being in the Horde. What happened?” Adora knew as soon as the words were out of her mouth that she’d said the wrong thing. Catra’s tail flicked angrily behind her and her ears drooped a little on her head.

“I don’t have the time nor the patience to go through my life story right now. And anyway, look who’s talking, Miss Firefly” the feline hissed.

The blonde’s jaw clenched against her will. It had been years since they’d last seen each other, was Catra really still mad at her for that?

“Catra-” she started but was interrupted by a loud _bang._ She instinctively reached for her sword sheathed on her back looking around nervously.

“What was that?” Adora asked.

“Probably nothing good” Catra replied, her ears flicking “C’mon we’d better hurry”

——————————————————————————

5 minutes and 2 heart attacks later, they arrived to what Adora assumed was the end of the tunnel. The path was blocked by metal crates meticulously stacked on top of one another.

The first thought she had was, _Dead end._ But Catra walked towards the far end of it and started pushing at one of the crates. Then she stopped, glancing backwards at Adora quizzically.

“Are you gonna help or what?”

Adora shook herself out of her stillness and moved to help Catra. She placed her hands and her left shoulder against the cold metal pointing her flashlight towards the ceiling, mimicking Catra’s position.

“On three, ready?” she nodded “One, two, three” both girls grunted with effort but managed to move the crate out of the way enough for them to crawl under. Once they were through, they moved the crate back into place.

Adora brushed her hands off and took a look around. The tunnel had shrunk into a smaller space that looked like a corridor, at the end of which stood a black metal door—or at least, she supposed it used to be black, now it looked more grayish.

Catra walked to the door and knocked three times, waited a few seconds then knocked twice more. She turned her flashlight off and instructed Adora to do the same, leaving them in total darkness. It made the Firefly uneasy both to be in darkness and to be in darkness with Catra. A few seconds later, the door opened and light poured out of it. Adora raised her hand to her face but had to squint her eyes nonetheless.

“It’s been a while” A tall, lean figure greeted them with a smile. Adora’s eyes hadn’t adjusted to the light yet but she could make out the person’s face and their blonde hair.They looked like they belonged to the lizard folk category but they looked nothing like the kind she had met, so she couldn’t be sure.

“Hey, DT. This is Adora. Adora, Double Trouble. They’re a friend” Catra introduced.

“Hi” Adora greeted shyly.

“Hey, darling. May I ask what brings you here?” Double Trouble asked.

“I need a favor” Catra said. A smirk broke out on Double Trouble’s face as they glanced at Adora knowingly.

Catra scoffed beside her and rolled her eyes at them. “Don’t get any ideas, it’s not that kind of favor”

“Of course, why don’t you come in?” Double Trouble moved so Catra and Adora could step inside before closing the door behind them.

The blonde found herself staring at a small apartment furnished with nothing but an old couch and a mattress pushed to the corner of the room with a blanket loosely thrown over it. Adora stopped in the middle of the room, awkwardly rubbing her arm. She eyed the source of light that stood right next to the couch and frowned. How…?

“Where’d you get a lamp?” Catra asked as if reading Adora’s thoughts.

“Oh, that? A gift from Entrapta. She told me it takes power from the sun, but do _not_ ask me how”

Catra just shrugged as if she was used to inventions like this one. Adora, on the other hand, found herself wondering how it worked and who “Entrapta” was to have come up with such a thing. She’d heard of several objects that used the sun as a source of power, but a lamp? Nope. She decided this wasn’t the moment to ask.

“So” DT started “how can I help?” 

“I need to get to the Crystal Castle” Catra said throwing herself on the couch, one arm slung over the back. Adora watched as Double Trouble made their way over to sit next to Catra but didn’t make any move to follow, preferring to stay standing instead.

“I see” DT nodded like they understood, then looked Adora up and down. “I bet she has something to do with it”

“Angella asked me to”

DT oohed, their eyes filling with curiosity. “What is my kitten doing getting involved with the Fireflies?”

_Kitten?_ Adora thought to herself, suppressing a snort. 

Catra shrugged noncommittally. “Pay’s good”

“Keep talking” DT said grinning devilishly at the feline. Catra sighed and rolled her eyes again.

“You can have 10%”

Double Trouble emitted a sound that was halfway between an offended scoff and a laugh.

“10%? Please, I wasn’t born yesterday. How about 40%?” It was phrased as a question but something made Adora sure it was more of a statement. This time Catra was the one who scoffed.

“No way” she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Oh, come on” they laid a hand on Catra’s thigh “for old times’ sake?”

Adora wondered what kind of “friend” DT was to Catra exactly. On an unrelated topic, she suddenly felt the urge to push them out the window. She clenched her jaw and looked away as if she was intruding.

“Fine” Catra finally relented “40 and you help us get through perimeter security and to the Crystal Castle without gossiping about it with everyone”

They shook hands, sealing the deal. “What’s so special about _you_ that they had to get you to the Crystal Castle of all places?” Adora’s head snapped back to the two hybrids on the couch. Both Catra’s and DT’s gazes were now fixed on her and she felt heat rise to her cheeks at the attention.

“Uhm” she stuttered as she searched her brain for a valid excuse. Why would the Fireflies need to smuggle a simple soldier like her out of town?

_Think, Adora. Think._

“They need someone to lead the attack on the bandits in Plumeria” she managed.

_Nice,_ she told herself.

“Wait, I thought part of your job was not asking questions” Adora said,crossing her arms over her chest.

DT shrugged. “Can’t hurt to try. Most people usually let their plans slip out without even realizing it”

“Kinda like you just did, genius” Catra smirked. Adora glared at her, which only made her smirk widen.

DT clapped their hands together and stood. “Very well, shall we depart? If we’re lucky we’ll be there in less than a few hours”

Catra snorted at their optimism. “Lucky, is not a word that has _ever_ described us”

———————————————————————————

When they finally made it out of that cursed tunnel Adora took a long, deep breath of fresh air. It was still dark outside but she could faintly see the first morning lights begin to show on the horizon.

Overall she could safely say she hated tunnels and she was glad to be back on the surface.

“We’d better get moving before morning comes. We have less of a chance of getting spotted with the cover of darkness” she told the smugglers.

“Thanks for the tip, princess. What would we ever do without you?” Catra said sarcastically as she started walking away with DT in tow.

“I was just trying to help” Adora huffed in response. She walked after Catra and DT, carefully avoiding tripping on her own feet. She was known to do that often.

Catra rolled her eyes. “We’re the ones doing the smuggling, remember?”

“I’m aware. I just thought—”

“Well don’t” Catra interrupted. Adora stopped and frowned at the feline’s back.

“Huh?” she asked confused.

“Don’t think. Just keep quiet and follow us. You should be good at that by now” Adora’s jaw clenched.

“Girls, girls. It’s going to be a long trip if you insist on getting on each other’s nerves, don’t you think?” DT said in a calming tone.

The blonde sighed in defeat. They were right, nobody needed more stress than was already present.

“I’m—” Adora stopped herself when she felt something press to the back of her spine sending shivers down her arms. She felt the familiar weight of her sword leave her and panic seized her. Then the pressure on her spine was replaced by the feeling of a cold object pressed against her throat.

She let out a quiet gasp. “Turn around slowly with your hands on your heads”.

Catra’s and DT’s heads snapped in her direction, the look of surprise on their faces quickly replaced by anger.

“Darling, we don’t want any trouble” DT raised their hands in front of them, showing they weren’t wielding any weapons. “Let the girl go and we can discuss business”

The person behind Adora pressed the weapon harder at her throat, drawing blood and making Adora inhale sharply.

“Shut up. I said hands on your heads” From the corner of her eye Adora saw another figure making their way to the smugglers as they slowly raised their hands over their heads.

When the person got into Adora’s line of sight she saw it was a man, holding a sword in front of him and pointing it at Catra and DT. He looked about 5’9 and bulky under his Horde uniform, but Adora was pretty certain he wouldn’t stand a chance against both hybrids.

“What’ll it take?” DT spoke up again, while Catra stared silently at the strangers.

“We don’t want anything” The man said.

Double Trouble rolled their eyes. “Oh please. Everybody wants something”

Adora tried not to yelp when the person behind her suddenly jerked the weapon away from her neck gasping loudly and leaving a gash on Adora’s neck.

“What the fuck is this?” It sounded like a woman’s voice but she wasn’t really sure, or cared for that matter.

The man approaching Catra and DT turned around in alarm.

“What? What is it?”

Adora felt a hand on her shoulder, poking at her shirt. “She’s infected”

Panic seized her once more and she elbowed the woman in the stomach, turning around.

The woman fell to her knees at the impact, both hers and Adora’s weapon clattering to the ground. DT and Catra took the opportunity to wrestle the other stranger’s weapon out of his grasp and hit him on the head with the sword’s hilt, making him crumple at their feet. 

Adora kicked the woman in front of her to the ground, straddling her and punching her square in the jaw. The woman groaned in pain as she pushed the blonde off of her and returned the favor. Adora’s jaw throbbed painfully.

The woman was about to land another blow when a _thud_ echoed and she slumped to the ground next to Adora, who pushed her body to the side.

Before the blonde could retrieve her weapon from its spot in the mud, she was pushed to the ground and went sprawling on her back once more.

When she looked up, Catra stood over her, glaring. She pointed a sword at the Firefly’s throat and raised her chin with the tip of the weapon. Adora managed to hold herself up on her elbows and give Catra a confused look.

“What the hell was she talking about?” the feline demanded.

“What do you me—”

“ _Don’t_ ” Catra hissed pressing the sword closer “play dumb with me, Adora”

Adora gasped lightly as the weapon grazed the already bleeding cut at the base of her jaw. “I can explain”

“You’d better do it fast, darling” DT cut in from behind the brunette, peering at the girl on the floor. Adora clenched her fists in conflict. Angella had told her not to speak of it _ever,_ for her own safety as much as for the safety of the people she loved. But what choice did she have?

“I got bitten three weeks ago” Adora forced out.

The feline above her seemed taken aback for a moment and her grip on the word slackened visibly. But then she quickly regained her composure glaring angrily at the Firefly.

“Bullshit, everybody turns within two days” Catra growled.

“Look at it. You’ll see” The feline didn’t stop glaring at the blonde. Her tail swished violently behind her. “Please”

For a moment Adora feared she would kill her right there and her efforts would all be in vain, but then she clenched her jaw and let out another growl deep in her throat.

“Up” she said pointing the sword away from her and tossing it into the grass at their feet. 

Adora took a deep breath and stood up, turning around. She considered running, but where would she go? She needed to get to the Crystal Castle and Catra and DT were her only way out of this goddamned city. She pulled the strap of her backpack down her arm to give the feline better access.

Her hair was pushed aside as Catra pulled her shirt down over her left shoulder where the bite mark was.

She strained her hearing for any sign of a reaction from the smugglers but hear nothing but the wind. Maybe they had abandoned her? Left without looking back for her to die on her own?

Then Catra spun her around again so they were face to face. Adora’s breath caught in her chest at the look she saw on the smuggler’s face. Gone was the glare she’d given the blonde before, replaced by a cold, distant gaze. If possible Adora felt even worse.

“So what?” the feline demanded “Angella set us up?”

“Why would she set you up?” Adora asked desperately.

“You tell me, princess” she spat the last word out.

“Catra, I promise she didn’t—”

“You’re no good at promises, so keep them for yourself” the feline hissed making Adora’s chest clench painfully. She shouldn’t care about this, all she needed was for Catra to get her to the Crystal Castle and then they’d part ways and never have to see each other again. So then why did she feel so dejected?

“Uh, maybe we should continue this later” DT interrupted. Catra’s head snapped in their direction.

“What?”

DT pointed at a spot just over the hill where flashlights shone in the dark. Catra moved away from Adora giving her one last glance before turning on her heel and walking away.

Adora quickly grabbed her sword and backpack from the ground and sprinted after her.

Needless to say, the conversation they had later wasn't fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, hope you enjoyed this new chapter. The title is taken from the song Through The Valley, which Ellie sings in the trailer. I also made a cover of it on my Youtube channel so if you wanna check it out the name's "Viki Leo". Can't promise that my singing exceptional but it was fun to record a couple of songs there, just to see what would happen. 
> 
> Next chapter we get a little flashback of how Adora got bitten. It'll be painful :) 
> 
> I apologize for any spelling and/or grammar errors, and if there are any suggestions or ideas I would love to hear them. 
> 
> If you'd like to chat about She-Ra or Tlou my Twitter's @vittoria_leo and my Tumblr's Fandomsaremylife. 
> 
> See you next week, XOXO

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, hope you enjoyed this first chapter. Sorry I ended on sort of a cliffhanger, I had to :)
> 
> I'm kinda bummed about tlou part 2 getting delayed but I also understand why they had to do it. 
> 
> I'm not sure if I'll update every Sunday or just whenever I can. Sorry for any spelling and/or grammar errors. I take criticism, so if you have anything you didn't like or just think something should've been done differently tell me. 
> 
> I took the Firefly history and the facts about the infected from The Last of Us wiki and the clues that are in the game. Also I watched too many documentaries about the Cordyceps virus on YouTube when I first watched the game so I felt the urge to add random facts in the fic. 
> 
> If you'd like to chat about She-Ra or The Last of Us my Twitter is @vittoria_leo and my Tumblr Fandomsaremylife. 
> 
> Stay safe and wash your hands often. xoxo


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